Osteochondrosis, the symptoms and treatment of which are described below, is a disease from which only representatives of the species of Homo sapiens suffer. The back pain is the result of the development of straightforwardness: due to the change in the location of the spinal column, the intervertebral discs are compressed and erased over time, as a result of which unpleasant symptoms occur. About 60% of the population of the planet suffer from osteochondrosis. Treatment of osteochondrosis is a rather difficult matter, but there are methods that allow you to forget about pain for a long time. What kind of disease is this, what does the deformation of the intervertebral discs occur and how to treat back osteochondrosis? You can find out everything about osteochondrosis by studying this article.
What is osteochondrosis?
Many have heard that there is such a disease as osteochondrosis. What is it? The leading sign of pathology is the deformation and inflammation of the joint cartilage. Osteochondrosis, the signs of which many people over 40 can observe, can affect not only the spine, but also other joints. To understand how to treat back osteochondrosis, and how this disease develops, you need to recall the structure of the spinal column.
The spine consists of 35 vertebrae, separated by articular cartilage. Soft cartilage ensure the flexibility of the spine, as well as its stable position in space. The basis of articular cartilage is intervertebral discs, which in the process of vital activity are subjected to various kinds of loads. These loads can be either static (long stay in one position) and dynamic (running, fast walking, jumping). Over time, due to loads, the intervertebral discs gradually abrupt, as a result of which the distance between the vertebrae decreases. Because of this, a person begins to experience signs of osteochondrosis, for example, pain, cannot make certain movements or remain in some poses for a long time, etc.
For what reasons is osteochondrosis developing?
There is no single cause of osteochondrosis: the disease develops due to a combination of several factors, among which the main ones can be distinguished:
- Hereditary predisposition. Of course, not the disease itself is inherited by osteochondrosis, but in the features of the bone structure: very often the causes of osteochondrosis lies in the insufficient production of certain proteins that give cartilage strength;
- intervertebral osteochondrosis often provoke metabolic disorders;
- the presence of diseases of the musculoskeletal system, for example, curvature of the spine or flat feet;
- The presence of a history of injuries in the spinal column: professional athletes often suffer from vertebratic osteochondrosis;
- lack of physical activity, sedentary lifestyle;
- the presence of excess weight;
- frequent stresses;
- Pregnancy: In this case, the cause of osteochondrosis is an increased load on the spine.
These are the main causes of osteochondrosis that provoke the development of the disease.
It is generally accepted that signs of osteochondrosis are usually manifested in adulthood. However, in recent years, the disease has been "younger": the diagnosis of osteochondrosis is often made by adolescents, while the disease may appear under the age of 15 years.
Most often, osteochondrosis of the intervertebral discs affects people of high stature, whose spine is subjected to increased loads. The emerging voltage leads to the fact that the intervertebral discs are deformed, as a result of which pain and limitation of mobility occur, intervertebral osteochondrosis develops.
Signs of osteochondrosis
Only a doctor can make a diagnosis and cure intervertebral osteochondrosis: you should not self -medicate. But everyone should know what symptoms indicate the possibility of osteochondrosis.
The main signs of osteochondrosis:
- a feeling of heaviness and pain in the back;
- the periodic occurrence of "goosebumps" in the area of the lower back, neck or back;
- a feeling of pain that shoots in a particular spine;
- pain when raising the hands up;
- the frequent attacks of dizziness;
- nausea and noise in the ears;
- Numbness of the limbs.
In the presence of at least one of the above symptoms, you should seek medical advice. After all, the sooner the treatment of osteochondrosis of the back is started, the easier it will be to get rid of the unpleasant manifestation of this disease. Is osteochondrosis treated at a late stage? The answer will be affirmative. True, how to defeat osteochondrosis, you will learn only after an examination in the clinic. An experienced orthopedist will advise how to deal with osteochondrosis, prescribe the necessary drugs and procedures. You should not be afraid: if you are diagnosed with osteochondrosis, treatment will be quite long, but effective. After all, osteochondrosis, due to modern methods of therapy, can quickly come to naught and not disturb the patient for a long time.
In order to decide how to treat osteochondrosis of the spine, the doctor must determine the degree of damage to the spinal column. This is impossible to do without a complete diagnostic examination: the patient has not enough symptoms of osteochondrosis to make a diagnosis. Typically, diagnostic procedures such as x -ray, MRI and CT are prescribed.
Varieties of osteochondrosis
There are two most common classifications of the disease. The first of them is based on the dislocation of the lesion, the second - on the degree of development of pathology.
Depending on the affected section, they distinguish:
- cervical osteochondrosis. Its main symptoms are pain in the neck, dizziness and headaches, pain in the chest, which gives into the hand, a feeling of clouding in the eyes. With cervical osteochondrosis in patients, hypertension attacks are often observed;
- Osteochondrosis of the thoracic region. The thoracic region is affected relatively infrequently. Pain in this type of spinal disease is a rather rare occurrence. Typically, patients complain of unpleasant sensations in the chest and pain in the heart, which often take as signs and symptoms of angina pectoris. Sometimes it is helped to help diagnose an ECG, which with osteochondrosis does not show any disorders of the heart muscle. Typically, the cause of osteochondrosis of the thoracic region is an injury or curvature of the spine;
- Osteochondrosis of the lumbar region. Since the lumbosacral region withstands heavy loads, the disease affects it quite often. The main syndromes of osteochondrosis of the lumbar region are shooting pains that are particularly strong in spring and autumn. Pain can be given into heels, caviar and knees. With infringement of the sciatic nerve, patients cannot bend in one direction. If you do not start timely treatment, osteochondrosis of the lumbar spine can be complicated by the appearance of a hernia. In men, the spine disease- osteochondrosis of the lumbar region- may be accompanied by impaired potency.
Depending on how osteochondrosis is manifested, four stages of development of this pathology are distinguished. Naturally, effective treatment of osteochondrosis with conservative methods is possible only in the initial stages. Spinal osteochondrosis develops in four stages:
- The first stage. Intervertebral discs are flattened, due to which the space between the vertebrae decreases. Small cracks occur on cartilage;
- The second stage. The distance between the vertebrae is reduced to such an extent that they begin to shift relative to each other;
- The third stage. Intervertebral discs are gradually squeezed out of the intervertebral space. At this stage, symptoms of spinal osteochondrosis affect the quality of life, limiting mobility and causing considerable suffering;
- The fourth stage. Bone spikes grow between the vertebrae, due to which the mobility of the spinal column decreases. Spikes injure nerves and vessels that are located near the spine, which is why the symptoms of osteochondrosis of the back become almost unbearable for humans and forced to take large doses of painkillers. At this stage, treatment with osteochondrosis is often carried out by surgical methods.
What to do with osteochondrosis? Is it possible to get rid of unpleasant symptoms of intervertebral osteochondrosis forever, and what procedures can alleviate the condition of the patient? You will find the answers below.
Drug treatment of osteochondrosis
Is it possible to cure osteochondrosis? Many doctors say that this is impossible. But to slow down the development of the disease, soften the symptoms and completely eliminate some signs of osteochondrosis. If the disease is in the early stages, conservative treatment methods are usually used: special drugs are used, physiotherapy, spa treatment, as well as a special diet are recommended.
Medicines are used for exacerbations of osteochondrosis. Medications help to get rid of the concerns of the patient, as well as slow down the development of pathology. The main groups of drugs that are treated with intervertebral osteochondrosis include:
- Anti -inflammatory drugs. These drugs help get rid of pain and limiting mobility in the spinal column. After the unpleasant manifestations of osteochondrosis begin to decrease, patients are written out for tablets. Typically, the course of treatment is about one month. Together with injections and tablets on the affected areas, anti -inflammatory and analgesic ointments are applied;
- Musorelaxants. With osteochondrosis, a cross -seated muscles occurs, which does not affect the patient's condition in the best way. Musorelaxants allow you to remove muscle clamps and alleviate unpleasant symptoms.
- Special protectors. Preparations related to this group help to slow down the process of deformation of cartilage, thereby slowing down the development of the disease.
How to defeat osteochondrosis of the spine? Treatment at 2-4 stages is carried out by additional drugs:
- vitamin complexes that accelerate metabolism and enhance tissue regeneration;
- drugs that normalize blood flow;
- Glucocorticosteroids that reduce inflammatory processes and remove swelling of the tissues;
- stimulants that enhance metabolism.
To prescribe drugs and determine their dosage should only the attending physician.
Physiotherapy
Medications have a better effect if they are used together with physiotherapeutic measures. Most often, with osteochondrosis, it is recommended:
- electrophoresis. If you do not know how to cure osteochondrosis of the spine, pay attention to electrophoresis. The procedure helps to relax the tense muscles and save the patient from pain. Thanks to electrophoresis, blood circulation in affected tissues improves and metabolism accelerates;
- acupuncture. Acting on biologically active points using thin needles, the therapist defeats pain and inflammatory process;
- Magnetotherapy. This method allows you to reduce pain and swelling of the tissues. In addition, with the help of magnetotherapy, it is possible to normalize metabolic processes in the affected tissues of the body;
- massage. The massage course is an excellent tool to reduce pain, as well as restore the mobility of the spine in osteochondrosis. Massage with osteochondrosis can only be performed by an experienced specialist: unprofessional intervention can lead to the fact that the spine will hurt even more, in the worst case you can damage the back. It is advisable to look for a masseur among friends who defeated osteochondrosis;
- Medical physical education. Patients suffering from osteochondrosis are recommended for physiotherapy exercises, which helps strengthen the muscle frame of the spine and accelerate the process of regeneration of damaged tissues. Reviews indicate that physical education is one of the best methods for therapy for back diseases. Symptoms cease to appear after a couple of months of regular classes. True, getting rid of pain, you should not stop doing exercises, otherwise discomfort may appear again;
- thermotherapy. This type of treatment of intervertebral osteochondrosis has a number of contraindications, therefore, before starting the thermotherapy course, it is necessary to consult your doctor. Thermotherapy has an analgesic effect and helps to quickly restore damaged tissues: it happens that after several sessions, the patient forgets for a long time about pain, and osteochondrosis manifests itself much less often than before;
- Mud. Thanks to the therapeutic mud applied to the patient’s back, you can reduce muscle spasm, eliminate inflammation and improve the blood circulation of the spine. Patient reviews indicate that osteochondrosis will cease to bother for a long time after several treatment courses.
Typically, patients are prescribed the entire complex of physiotherapeutic measures. The duration of the course and the best methods of treatment depend on the degree of damage to the spine. During the year, the course of treatment of osteochondrosis of the back is recommended from three to four times: as a result, the pain and symptoms of the disease will gradually come to naught.
Is it possible to cure osteochondrosis without physiotherapy? Any doctor will give a negative answer: it is advisable to use a set of methods to get the necessary result.